Pittsburgh Pirates: Where Do They Stand In MLB Power Rankings?
By Larry Snyder
The Pittsburgh Pirates are home to play 10 consecutive contests leading up to the All-Star break, beginning with a three-game set with the Cleveland Indians at PNC Park. The Bucs are on a three game win streak with their sweep of the Tigers in Detroit and have won five of their last six.
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Pittsburgh has won nine of their last 12 match-ups and 15 of their last 20 along the North Shore. This series marks the Tribe’s firt return to PNC Park since 2010 when the Pirates took two out of three from June 18-20. The crew of the Jolly Roger is 8-4 in interleague action this season.
Coming into the weekend series with the Cleveland Indians, here are some recent observations about the Pirates from the four corners of the internet.
Charlie Wilmoth in his preview at Bucs Dugout, part of SB Nation, points out that the Bucs will miss both Corey Kluber and Carlos Carrasco, Cleveland’s most effective starters.
Over at Yahoo Sports, Alan Ferguson in his writing about the sweep of the Tigers, sees a Pirates lineup that has produced 22 runs and 49 hits, including 17 extra base hits. Jordy Mercer is beginning to heat up with the summer temperatures as the shortstop is batting .469 in his last seven contests.
Roger Schlueter in a special report to MLB.com points out that Pittsburgh as a team has a 2.91 ERA. The team has gone into the All-Star break with a sub 3.00 ERA only once and that was in 1968. That year, Ron Kline, Bob Veale, Steve Blass, Jim Bunning, Roy Face and Company put together a 2.65 ERA mark.
Meanwhile, Pat Lackey at the Where Have You Gone Andy Van Slyke blog is encouraged by Neil Walker’s recent production at the plate. The second baseman went 10-for-17 with two doubles, two home runs, three runs scored and seven RBIs in the sweep of the Tigers in Detroit.
Rumbunter‘s Tyler White casts his gaze at the Pirates farm system to ask the question, “Where’s John Holdzkom and why isn’t he on the big league squad yet?”
Time once more to look in on the internet experts, most of whom have the Pirates in their Top 10. Here is another review of the MLB Power Rankings.
Bleacher Report – This Week #5 / Last Week #3 – Joel Reuter has Francisco Liriano as his Pirates’ Pitcher of the Week.
Pittsburgh Pirates
CBS Sports – This Week #5 / Last Week #2 – Matt Snyder gives Pittsburgh a lot of credit for adding Francisco Cervelli to the roster this season.
ESPN – This week #4 / Last Week #2 – David Schoenfield thinks the Pirates might be in the market for a new first baseman at the trade deadline.
FanSided – This Week #5 / Last Week #5- Kyle Franzoni also points out that Francisco Cervelli is ranked second in baseball in pitch framing. Russell, who?
FOX Sports – This Week #8 / Last Week #8 – Craig Goldstein reminds all of us that the Pirates have the second-best record in the National League.
Rant Sports – This Week #3 / Last Week #3 – Jacob Kornhauser believes this team looks like a serious threat in the N.L.
SI.com – This Week #6 / Last Week #5 – The staff at Sports Illustrated drops the Bucs down one notch this week.
USA Today – This Week #6 / Last Week #5 – The writers at USA Today noticed that Andrew McCutchen added a protective elbow guard to his uniform.
What are your thoughts about the Pirates rankings? Let your fellow fans know in the comments section below.
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